NOTE: Sue McPherson is both the writer of Brontide AND one of its characters. She will be referred to as ‘McPherson’ in her capacity as a writer, and as ‘Sue’ in her capacity as a character.

Introductory activities

1. The art of conversation

Interviews

Have students consider the nature and purpose of interviews and conversations. This is a key structural component that frames the narrative in Brontide. Students should reflect on their experience with interviews in different contexts, e.g. a job interview, social television interview (such as The Oprah Winfrey Show, Ellen, The Project or The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon), formal research interview, teacher interview over an incident at school, etc.

Discuss the intended audiences and purposes of these nuanced texts, pointing out that interviews and conversations are a form of storytelling that can be unpredictable, open-ended OR structured with an end in mind. Students could complete a table like the one below, and could even locate and share model/mentor texts that demonstrate different interview styles.

Type of interview/conversation Purpose Audience Example
Job interview
Social television interview
Formal research interview

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View excerpts of Anh’s Brush With Fame via ABC iview (with multiple series available, teachers can select episodes based on their contexts and students’ interest). Analyse with students the ways in which Anh Do, as the conversationalist, guides his guests on a journey of vulnerability, sharing and disclosure. Students can map the conversations on visual charts according to their modality, language, body language, voice, and overall tone.

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Modelling

Model storytelling to the class using a Bildungsroman moment from your youth. Students will then form groups of 3–5 and take turns telling a teenage/coming-of-age story. Once everyone has taken their turn, debrief as a whole class about the personal dynamics of people sharing stories and opening up. Consider and discuss the shared nature and unity enjoyed through narrative.

NOTE: Take time to set clear expectations for sharing, and remember to use protective interrupting should someone share information that is not suited to the class setting. You could also use this as an opportunity to increase student awareness about the support services available at your school.

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Hot seating

Discuss with students what makes a great question – one that is open-ended, purposeful, targeted, and relevant – then play the hot seating game. Have one student sit in the ‘hot seat’ (they can pretend to be anyone they want) while the rest of the class asks them questions. A variation on this activity would be to play celebrity heads.

These activities will help students see how McPherson crafts questions to draw out as much information as possible from the social capital and relationships in Brontide.

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First Nations storytelling
  • Discuss with students the significance and centrality of oral storytelling in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
  • Refer to the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) for information about different types of stories, their cultural contexts, and the mediums in which they have been told.
  • Watch and discuss Jacinta Koolmatrie’s TED Talk, ‘The myth of Aboriginal stories being myths’, and consider how sharing orally can be a key aspect of identity and belief for First Nations peoples.
  • Discuss the concept of yarning and having respectful communication and dialogue.
  • Model a yarning circle with students, following the QCAA guidelines.
  • Consider how Sue (the character) builds respectful relationships with the boys in Brontide via her opening questions and the ensuing dialogue.

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2. Risk-taking

Discuss the topic of risk-taking, using this meme as a prompt. Have students complete a PMI (plus, minus, interesting) chart about risk-taking based on their own experiences. Working with a partner, they should develop a definition of ‘risk-taking’ and refine this as a whole class. Students can then share examples of what they think constitutes safe and unsafe behaviours at school. As a class, walk around the school grounds and complete a risk assessment for ‘a day in the life of a student’: assess the risks themselves, how they could be minimised, and how a judgment call could be applied in terms of safe or unsafe behaviour.

Revisit the risk-taking behaviour and examples students identified earlier and discuss emotional risk-taking: being vulnerable and ‘opening up’. Ask students about the contexts in which they would be more willing and comfortable to share, and the contexts in which they would be less willing. Have students do some stream of consciousness writing to illustrate how they can be open and foster a sense of trust and connection – in this instance, between themselves and the page only.

Survey students to see if they identify different levels of honesty and ease in sharing stories (e.g. how comfortable they feel generally, whether this changes depending on age, what other factors contribute to someone being able to open up). As a demonstration, students could undertake a game of ‘would you rather’ using either a random generator OR their own questions drawn from a hat. Be sure to maintain active supervision and oversight throughout this activity.

Discuss the options that might go through a person’s mind when taking risks, and the social pressures to impress one’s peers/mates. Students could view Kashfia Rahman’s TED talk, ‘How risk-taking changes a teenager’s brain’, and discuss the research presented. Finally, talk about the different types of risks – both explicit (tarping) and implicit (being vulnerable, sharing) – in Brontide.

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3. The cover

Examine the front and back covers of the text. Discuss the word ‘brontide’ (students can research the meaning if they don’t know) and connect it with the content on the covers. Talk about examples of pathetic fallacy, meaning and symbolism to enhance the narrative storytelling nature of the text.

Examine the body language of the four boys on the front cover and discuss its impact on the reader. Have students connect the visual imagery in the text (Nig the dog, Old Man tree, thunder, etc.) with wider parallels in meaning that McPherson explores in her writing. How does the cover continue to add layers of meaning here?

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Personal response on reading the text

Brontide is highly accessible and could easily be read in one sitting. Have students record any questions and comments they think of in a reading response journal. They could also work in groups of 4–5 to read the parts of the different characters. After reading each scene, they can write some notes in their journal, then share and discuss their initial thoughts, reactions and responses with their peers.

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Have students read ‘Parents need to learn to love their kids taking risks’ and create a Venn diagram that reflects what this opinion piece says about risk-taking compared to Brontide. What connections and similarities do students see with their own experiences? They can reflect on the riskiest thing they have ever done and compare this to the experiences captured in the text.

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The theme of mateship manifests in Brontide in many ways. Students can discuss what makes a good friend and reflect on how this is explored in the text. They can also discuss the difference between mateship and friendship, drawing on information from this Macquarie Dictionary blog post to support their understanding.

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Students should research the conventions surrounding plot twists. Have the class vote on whether they prefer a pleasant or unpleasant surprise, and why. Then, using sticky notes, students can identify the elements of foreshadowing in the leadup to Brontide’s ending. Have them consider what message this conveys about the nature of taking risks.

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Outline of key elements of the text

Plot

Discuss with students the similarities between Brontide and the Bildungsroman style of writing and content. Have them reflect on the wide appeal and relatability of such coming-of-age narratives. They are to explore how the Bildungsroman elements of the plot are observed in the four main characters – each with their unique dispositions – and how, as they share more honestly with Sue, their responses become more candid. Have students map on a visual chart the unfolding plot (scenes) as told through the storytelling sessions. Highlight where yarning takes place and the boys narrate their life stories vividly. Students can discuss how humour, language, and tone colour the written expression so that it leaps off the page and into the hearts and minds of the reader.

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Character

The four main characters – Rob, Pen, Benny Boy and Jack – collaboratively drive the narrative, guided by Sue’s questions. Consider the nature of fragmented characters and the revelation of small bits of information over time. Sue is also a key character, and although she is a guest at Taralune High School, we can see how she builds relationships with these young men and how their language becomes more familiar. This highlights the centrality of relationships to the story and connects back to the earlier discussion about yarning.

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Themes

Perspective

Conversations between Rob and Sue reveal a stark contrast in their attitudes towards race and what they consider to be appropriate (or not). Students can consider differences between adult/youth perspectives, male/female perspectives, outsider/insider perspectives, and so on.

Mateship

Reflect on how mateship and bonding seem to revolve around risk-taking behaviour for many of the characters in Brontide; where this is not the case, it mostly stems from similar interests. Students can consider what aspects of mateship and bonding emerge from Sue’s relationships with the boys.

Masculinity

Explore some of the language around masculinity and gender in the text. In particular, students should identify language use that reflects different characters’ perceptions of gender. They can then reflect on how this language might align or collide with their own views.

Language

The power of words drives much of the impact, tension and characterisation in the text. Students can reflect on how some words are used for particular purposes, both in Sue’s questioning and in the students’ responses to her.

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Synthesising activity

In pairs, students are to write a conversational script and present an interview that explores the theme of risk-taking. The interview may focus on why risks are so attractive; the impacts and consequences of taking risks; or perhaps on revealing the riskiest thing the interviewee has done (this can be fictional). Students may choose to write in either a semi-structured or structured interview style, and could present their interviews live, pre-recorded or as a podcast.

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